New drug could hold back aggressive breast cancer

A NEW drug for an aggressive form of breast cancer could allow women to survive with the disease for months longer.

The drug not only prevents the spread of breast cancer but its side effects are less severe, experts at the American Society for Clinical Oncology heard.

The T-DM1 drug will be used to treat patients suffering from HER2-positive breast cancer, one of the most aggressive forms of the disease.

Research has found the drug keeps cancer at bay for three months longer than conventional treatments, while it is so precise the side-effects, such as hair loss and severe diarrhoea commonly associated with other forms of chemotherapy, are significantly reduced.

Professor Paul Ellis, from Guy’s Hospital in London, said: “These results are remarkable because for the first time, in breast cancer, we have been able to significantly improve efficacy while substantially reducing many of the unpleasant side effects associated with chemotherapy.

“HER2-positive breast cancer is very aggressive and once it progresses to the advanced stage it becomes difficult to treat, so there is a need for new treatment options, like T-DM1, that can keep cancer at bay while maintaining patients’ quality of life.”

T-DM1 could be available to patients in less than a year.